The Awful Truth: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A screwball comedy film with the title The Awful Truth. It consists of two reels of black-and-white 16mm acetate film with sound.

The film tells the story of Lucy and Jerry Warriner (Irene Dunne and Cary Grant), a married couple who mutually decide to get a divorce due to erroneous suspicions of infidelity. Mrs. Warriner vacates the couple's home and takes Daniel Leeson (Ralph Bellamy), an Oklahoma oil baron, as a lover, while Mr. Warriner finds a paramour in Barbara Vance (Molly Lamont), a wealthy socialite. The couple eventually abandons their divorce plans the night before it is to be finalized.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1937
• Directed by: Leo McCarey, American, 1898 - 1969
• Produced by: Leo McCarey, American, 1898 - 1969
• Subject of: Irene Dunne DHS, American, 1898 - 1990
• Subject of: Cary Grant, British American, 1904 - 1986
• Distributed by: Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., founded 1919
• Owned by: D.C. Public Library, American, founded 1896
• Type: sound films
• Type: black-and-white films (visual works)
• Type: feature films
• Type: 16mm (photographic film size)
• Medium: acetate film
• Dimensions: Duration (Reel 1): 27 Minutes
• Dimensions: Length (Film): 975 Feet
• Dimensions: Duration (Reel 2): 30 Minutes
• Dimensions: Length (Film): 1075 Feet
• Place used: Washington, District of Columbia, United States, North and Central America
• Place filmed: United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Comedy
• Topic: Film
• Topic: Hollywood (Film)
• Object number: 2017.55.114.1ab
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Transferred from the DC Public Library
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: Restrictions likely apply. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.